I went to Georgia this weekend & made some new friends. Found a killer RPU project in the process. It is a Brookville cowl with a hand made chassis & junkyard rear body section. The work in it is really amazing. The engine is a 260ci Cosworth Ford marine engine with a shit load of work done inside. It's going to be a real screamer. I thought the body might be of particular interest to some here. After buying the Brookville cowl, the builder went to the junkyard & cut the upper quarters out of a 1993 Ford panel van. The beltline lined up perfectly & the rear corners had an almost perfect curve in them. Might be worth looking into if anyone is trying to do one on a budget. JH JH
Not fair, Late posts son't count! It does look good and should flow well for the back half. Kevin LFD inc.
I love that modified. Especially the quarter eliptical rear set-up. I'd love to hear that cosworth fired up too.
Nice, it looks like a rpu i saw featured in hot rod mag. Here is the link to the article. http://www.hotrod.com/featuredvehicles/hrdp_1005_tube_chassis_1931_roadster_pickup/index.html
I may be wrong, but that sure looks like a BBF cylinder head. Are you sure that isn't a Mercruiser 3.7L engine? Either way, I like....a lot. More pics please.
Nice! Great idea, been collecting parts for a little roadster myself, off to the junkyard now to find a van...
I'm pretty sure he said that it used a 460 head. He is a Ford nut & knows his stuff. For sure though, it is a Cosworth. JH
Harrison, I understand the confusion about the Cosworth Ford designation as about the same time as Ford Motorsport was providing the Cosworth Ford a 1.6 liter English Ford block with Cosworth heads they put out an anouncement flier, that I have a copy of, that shows what they call the Ford Motorsport 4-Cylinder Aluminum Block... M-6010-A224. I heard that the Ford Motorsport deal fell thru as a result of some sort of dispute. I understand that this block was originally concieved and built by Mercury Marine engineers after MM was blown off by GM commercial with regard to GM suppling Special Spec. engines to MM. I think that GM told MM that they built more engines in a day than MM bought in a year. I heard that the engineers at MM were P.O.ed with GM and decided to make their own High Torque Big Block 4 cylinder engines. Being the smart engineers that they are they decided not to re-invent the wheel. So they started with the Ford 460 head and internals coupled with their aluminum block, Crank and cam. The resulting engine is now available used out of Mercruiser powered boats. Many boat owners bash this engine as it had several issues such as a cast iron head on an aluminum block, the water pump on the end of the cam shaft and the alternator on the end of the crankshaft. These short commings can be easily overcome in a car installation. I have a moto that I should listen to those who succeed rather than those who fail as they have the right information. These engines are very robust, provide very good Torque and HP and don't weigh very much. They can be used with modifications to provide good powerful engines for light cars and are very durable. Like other modern engines they can be hot rodded and will provide durability that is inversly proportional to the HP that they provide. They have set many records in almost every sort of vehicle maybe even in boats. Harrison if possable please put me in touch with the guy that showed you his project as I would like to exchange information with him. It seems that we have been working in parallel Universes. Thanks, dawford
Harrison, I see from the pictures that your friend put a bump in the Lakewood bellhousing to clear the Delco starter. The Lakewood bellhousing originally has the bump on the passenger (Chevy) side. Tell him that the Delco weighs about 21lbs. There is an International Scout High Torque IMI starter on ebay for $235.00 that is smaller, the mount rotates in 6 positions, it provides more torque with less amps and weighs less than 9lbs. If you can obtain a weight power to ratio of 10 to 1 every 12lbs is a 1.2hp gained. The Main added advantages are that a smaller and narrower package that can be rotated to allow room for other parts such as exhaust manifolds and the elinination of the long snout that is on the front of the Delco which means that no modification to the bellhousing is necessary. I talked to IMI who explained why these starters are pricier than other High Torque starters such as Chevy. They said that because they are a limited use machining for the International truck they have had to charge more for them. The fact that they also fit the Mercruiser is incidental and I just found out about it by accident. Dick
gnichols, This is what I have been talking obout. Good pictures. I will have a similar setup in the 8N 1929 RPU except I will run the modified Mercruiser manifold and a stealth PowerGen alternator. I will have all of the front mounted water pump removed. The engine frame and wheels will be painted red and the body will be painted grey like a Ford 8N tractor. This setup will look like a tractor engine in a RPU but will go like spit. It will look similar to the picture of Eli's but with a flat hood. I might stick a dummy exhaust out the top of the hood. I don't want it hooked up because the exhaust would blow back in my face. My 30 woodie the one in the upper left of my thread and my 30 closed cab PU will have everything covered with a hood and look as stock as possible. I will paint those engines Model A Green and if questioned I might say that the engine is actually a Mercury or that I installed an overhead conversion. Isn't this hobby fun. Dick
its cool that you posted this, i worked for him a for a few months. he is awesome, a very good fabricator tudor, his shop is right by the drag strip
Bitchen little RPU with some crafty work! Van quarters... brilliant. I really, really, reeeeeeally like projects like this! Sam
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